Museum Crusade Merits Support

The Time Has Come To Make The Dream Of A Showcase For Contributions Of Virgil Hawkins And Jim Durden Come True.

February 21, 1996

A worthwhile idea came up Saturday at a ceremony honoring Virgil Hawkins, the black Lake County lawyer who single-handedly challenged the most powerful institutions in Florida by demanding admission to the all-white University of Florida law school.

Leesburg lawyer Harley Herman, a champion of Mr. Hawkins' memory, suggested that the old Okahumpka post office be turned into a museum to capture the legacy of Hawkins and other Lake County African-Americans - a legacy that is rich in culture.

It is an idea whose time clearly has come, and it should be embraced enthusiastically by all Lake County residents.

Some residents, though, are reticent - especially within the white legal community.

Sticking in their throats is the more recent memory that Mr. Hawkins - after finally being admitted to the Florida Bar at the age of 70 - was forced to resign in disgrace before he died in 1988.

They should remember that Mr. Hawkins - who is singlehandedly responsible for integrating Florida's university system - was destined to fail.

Although he forced the desegregation, he was not allowed to attend the University of Florida. Instead, at the age of 57, after aspiring for many years to be a lawyer, he took the only route he could find to attain his dream: He graduated from an unaccredited, out-of-state law school.

That meant he couldn't take the Florida Bar exam. Later, however, the Florida Supreme Court acknowledged that Mr. Hawkins had been treated unjustly and ordered that he be admitted to practice.

In failing health, Mr. Hawkins should have acknowledged the order for what it was - a gesture of conciliation. He began, though, to practice. No one expected him to succeed. And they were right.

But the mistakes of a broken old man should not eclipse his much larger contribution to society.

Mr. Hawkins refused to bow to community pressure and withdraw his application to the University of Florida. Instead, the son of a poor Okahumpka preacher and grove picker took on an eight-year fight with the state over the right of blacks to attend taxpayer-supported universities.

Mr. Hawkins made a tremendous sacrifice for minorities and should be commended for his courage and perseverance.

His legacy needs to be preserved.

And Mr. Hawkins is not alone.

The late Jim Durden, a widely respected African-American public defender, made Lake County his home for years. His history, too, deserves to be recorded because he fought for blacks at a time when many other lawyers wouldn't take African-American clients.

Mr. Herman's plan to fill the old Okahumpka post office with historical papers and mementos from Mr. Hawkins' career and from the longtime practice of Mr. Durden is a good one. Otherwise, the historic contributions of these valuable figures - long ignored because of their color - will be lost.

The idea should be enthusiastically supported financially and otherwise by a broad-based public and private partnership of lawyers, history buffs, government officials and taxpayers in Lake County.

For some years, Mr. Herman has been the lone white voice in the fight to preserve the memory of Mr. Hawkins. This should be no longer.

Recognition for blacks in Lake County has come slowly. Over the years, the county has been slow to desegregate and slower still to change its ideas about race relations. Even now, it is rare to see white faces at a function honoring a black achiever.

Supporters of the Okahumpka plan should band together and ask state lawmakers for historic preservation money to build the proposed museum.

Last year, the state set aside $11.9 million to buy historic buildings. If money is available again this year, local legislators should snag some of the cash for this project.

Already, state Rep. Alzo Reddick, D-Orlando, has pledged his support. Now it's up to Lake Countians to make it happen.

This time, Harley Herman shouldn't be crusading by himself. Lake County lawyers of all colors should be at the front of the charge, joined by local legislators and their constituents.